Here is the lastest episode. Fine, so it’s a partial not the second half of Chapter 2 as you were most likely expecting.

For those who have come in late if you go to the Emily Dahill, CID page you can read what has preceded this segment.

Chapter 3

Part 1

I just thought that you would like to meet several more characters in the story instead.

“Two weeks and not an email or a call,” May Cullen mumbled to herself as she stormed into her tiny, three room apartment.

She tossed her purse in the general direction of the coat rack just inside the hallway. She smiled when, by some miracle, the strap caught one of the hooks.

Three steps brought her into the kitchen/eating room. From a cabinet over the sink she pulled down a beer stein then, without having to take a step, opened the fridge. Pulling out an iced cold beer, she first trailed the bottle over the back of her neck. Ah, that feels good. She then proceeded, with extreme care, to pour the frosty beverage into the ceramic mug, making sure she achieved the right amount of foam. Not too much. Not too little.

Kicking off her shoes, May headed for the only room with air conditioning, the bedroom. Settling the beer on a water stained coaster, by her computer, she proceeded to climb out of her polyester waitress uniform. She then checked the A/C to make sure it was still on ‘HIGH’, not that in this heat wave it would make much difference.

Settling in front of the computer she first checked emails. News and weather would come later. Course, she thought, the weather will be another scorcher.

She scanned the emails. Most were from friends scattered around the country. A few from Canada, but she’d save them for later. She went through the list twice, looking for one. “Damn the man. He knows it’s important for him to tell me if he got the evidence. Without it our friends can’t come home.”

She started to reach for the burn phone she’d gotten at a convenience store across the state. Turning it on she called up the contact list. Scrolling down she highlighted his name and started to call him when an email alert diverted her attention.

She gave out a restrained, relieved sigh when she saw his name as the sender. Setting the cell down, she took a long drink of the beer while she opened the email.

Got him. Got it.

If she could have gotten away with a wild, loud cheer she would have but knew the neighbors would complain about the noise. Instead, she drained the stein before heading back to the kitchen for a new, colder one.

For the last four years, that little piece of now yellowed paper had been the bain of not only her, her brother, but several close friends existence.

Several years before, their father had deserted the family. That and the children’s periodic, minor brushes with the law had all finally pushed their mother over the edge. One day, alone, she drove her car into a nearby raging river, never to be seen again. All the police and searchers had found was a few torn shreds of the dress May had last seen her in.

She wanted to talk to him, to hear his voice but an unsureness swirled around in the back of her mind. Maybe an email would be safer. But, she still wouldn’t be able to hear his voice, which she hadn’t heard in at least two weeks. Not since he’d stumbled upon the paper. And from what he’d told her the last time they’d talked, it had been totally by accident.

May closed her eyes as that last conversation drifted through her mind, ‘Sis, you’re not going to believe this but someone here has a copy of the clipping. How he’d gotten a hold of it I’ve got no clue?’

Her brother had always been the stronger of them and May knew he’d do whatever would be necessary to protect especially her.

‘Don’t worry May,’ he only called her May when things were going to get bad, not for them but for someone, ‘I’ll take care of everything. Got the perfect place to stash the body where no one will find it for a long, if ever time.’

Her instincts said to her he’d use the same place as before. Simple. Easy. Perfect. And if the traps were still in place, totally safe from prying busybodies.

Resettling at the keyboard, May started to compose a response, a lot more words than he’d used, when her cell rang, not the burn but her own. She recognized her boss’s name and number on the caller ID. No, I’m not coming in to work tonight. She let the call go to voice mail and would check it later, much later.

Frustrated that her train of thought had been interrupted, she decided that a call was worth the risk. From the burn phone so the number couldn’t be traced. This time she didn’t hesitate and heard her brother’s voice before the second ring.

‘Actually, this time it was easier than a year ago. Been studying martial arts which made a difference. I’m even thinking of requesting some advanced training. I figure if I work harder then I’ll get the posting I really want.’

“I’m glad. I still remember the first time for me. Took me a long time before the nightmares went away. Now it’s getting easier which I’m glad about.”

Dead silence floated between the two phones and both were thinking of the next course of events that needed to be done.

‘May, have you been able to find the final target yet?’ A hint of worried concern could be heard in her brother’s voice.

“Yeah. Turns out he moved to this jerky backwater dump of a town. Seen him a couple of times but he doesn’t recognize me.”

‘That’s good at least. Will he be easy to deal with?’

“Piece of cake. Well, I’d better let you go before you get into trouble. Great hearing your voice and how soon can you come home?”

‘Bout another week and I’ll take the weekend off. As the date gets closer I’ll email where to meet me.’

“I’ll look for it. Boy it’ll be great to see you again. Bye.”

‘Bye, sis.’

May waited until she heard her brother hang up then she did, but immediately dialed another number. This call only lasted a few seconds as she passed along the information she’d just gleaned from her brother.